Candidate: Intranasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine
Category: VAX
Type: Vaccine using BC-PIV, a viral vector platform technology developed by Mie University and BioComo.
Status: MediciNova said September 11 that the high neutralizing antibodies induced in mice by BioComo’s BC-PIV-based Respiratory Syncytial (RS) virus vaccine, along with the intranasal route of administration, supported the scientific and technical rationale of MediciNova’s intranasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine for COVID-19. Strong induction of neutralizing antibodies against the prefusion F antigen was confirmed, according to MediciNova.
On September 1, MediciNova said it was preparing to start production of vaccine candidates for safety toxicology tests and clinical trials after narrowing its vaccine prototypes for future development down to “several” candidates that induced a stronger specific antibody response. The company is assessing a number of combinations of modality and antigen which the company said are highly expected to induce immunity.
Also, MediciNOva said it examined the induction of specific antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein by inoculating mice with the vaccine prototypes using a single intranasal dose. Induction of specific antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 antigen was measured using ELISA tests and compared. MediciNova said it was currently in the process of analyzing neutralizing antibody titers through in-vivo testing that included induction of mucosal immunity and measurement of the antibody titer; analysis of cell-mediated immunity (CD4/CD8-positive T cells); and in vivo study to test the vaccine prototype’s efficacy by nasal spray to prevent viral infection.
BioComo, MediciNova’s development partner, has converted packaging cells into a master cell bank.
Among the multiple prototypes, MediciNova confirmed that the SARS-CoV-2 specific protein antigen mounted on their membrane surfaces binds with ACE2, a known receptor of SARS-CoV-2.
COVID-19: 300 Candidates and Counting
To navigate through the >300 potential therapeutic and vaccine options for COVID-19, GEN has grouped the candidates into four broad categories based on their developmental and (where applicable) clinical progress:
● FRONT RUNNER – the most promising therapeutics/vaccines based on clinical progress, favorable data or both.
● DEFINITELY MAYBE – earlier phases with promising partners, or more advanced candidates in development that have generated uneven data
● KEEPING AN EYE ON… – interesting technology, attracting notable partners, or both, but preliminary data.
● TOO SOON TO TELL – longshots pending additional experimental and/or clinical data.
GEN has also tagged the most common treatment types:
● ANTIVIRAL
● VAX
● ANTIBODY
● RNA
